Etisalat board announces key dividends

Abu Dhabi, February 20, 2012

UAE's largest telecommunications company Etisalat said its board has proposed a dividend at 60 fils par value after approving the consolidated financial results for fiscal year ended December 31, 2011.

Announcing this after a board meeting, Etisalat said the company's net cash (after debt) amounted to Dh3.3 billion, emphasizing strong credit rating. The company also achieved a 22 per cent growth in subscriber numbers which hit 167 million.

Etisalat had earlier said its 2011 net profit fell 23.4 percent to Dh5.84 billion from 7.63 billion dirhams in the year-ago period due to the impairment charge.

The results also reflect Dh1 billion impairment on net profits, following the recent decision by the Supreme Court of India to cancel 122 licenses, including that of Indian subsidiary Etisalat DB (India).

Excluding the impact of the impairment, operating profits before federal royalty remained robust at 42 percent and the group maintained a strong cash balance of Dh3.3 billion to reaffirm its investment grade credit ratings.

Mohammed Hassan Omran, the chairman said, “Etisalat has continued to achieve growth in its operating revenues. It has also maintained strong operating profit margins at 32 per cent before federal royalty."

"If we set aside the drop of value in the Indian operation, we see that the corporation has maintained good profitability despite challenges that are being witnessed by business sectors across the globe and particularly in the Arab region," he added.-TradeArabia News Service